The invention relates to safety biopsy forceps which are suitable in particular for infants for all ventricles of the heart and for the biopsy of the left ventricle of the heart of adults.
Biopsy forceps are conventionally known for collecting specimens of mucous from
the mouth and the throat PA1 the respiratory tract (trachea and bronchial system) PA1 the stomach canal and intestinal tract PA1 the hollow organs of the kidneys PA1 the bladder and
the uterus.
There are also known biopsy forceps for collecting specimens of heart tissue. They are preferably inserted via plastic catheters up to in front of the cardiac wall. Then the spoons are opened and pressed towards the heart tissue. The forceps are pulled shut and the spoons thereby grasp the tissue and cut out a specimen thereof which is pulled out through the catheter. The conventional prior art biopsy forceps are only suitable for the right half of the heart having a soft tissue. Therefore, it allows a relatively slight collection of specimen of tissue thereof. Problems arise when it is used in the left ventricle of the heart, because the tissue thereof is less segmented and smoother. The spoon forceps slip off and do not grasp.
There are also diseases which are accompanied by a thickening and/or hardening of the cardiac wall, whereby a satisfactory removal of the tissue is not possible with the conventionally known biopsy forceps.
The conventional prior art forceps are designed as disposable instruments and can be used only once. Because the wires shift during operation, it is no longer possible to attain a definite spoon position when the forceps are used a second time. This can already occur, if during the first application, there is not removed any tissue, or only an insuffient amount of tissue. In this case, a second try is very risky, and the forceps have to be taken out and replaced by a new instrument. Otherwise, during the second try, it is possible that the wide open initial position is no longer attained, which would pose the risk of perforating the cardiac wall, or at least could result in an insufficient specimen collection.
Another disadvantage of the conventionally known disposable instruments consists in that blood enters via the spiral which is not impermeable to fluid whereas the Bowden pulling means cannot be cleaned, because the head of the instrument is tightly fastened to the flexible pulling means. Also the handles of the conventionally known forceps are undetachably fastened to the flexible Bowden pulling means and cannot be cleaned.
In addition to the mentioned disadvantages, these disposable instruments are also highly uneconomical, not only with respect to material usage, but also due to the resulting costs thereof.
Furthermore, another great disadvantage is that they are not adaptable to various tissues, which can cause faulty biopsies.
The object of the invention is to overcome the disadvantages of the conventionally known forceps not only with respect to material usage and costs thereof, but also with respect to their lacking adaptability.